NBC SPORTS GROUP EXTENDS FRENCH OPEN PARTNERSHIP THROUGH 2024
New Multi-Year, Multi-Platform Agreement Includes Increased Digital Rights and 10 Additional Hours of Television Coverage Beginning in 2013
Coverage Now Includes Memorial Day play and Women's Semifinals
NBC will continue to Air Opening Sunday, Middle Weekend and Live Championship Weekend Coverage
LONDON/NEW YORK - August 5, 2012 - The NBC Sports Group and the French Tennis Federation, today announced a multi-year, multi-platform extension that includes 10 more hours of live U.S. television coverage and increased digital rights for the Grand Slam event through 2024. NBC will air the opening Sunday of the tournament, as it did this year for the first time, as well as middle weekend tennis, the men's and women's semifinals and the men's and women's finals.
This extension brings key days of the tournament to the network, including Memorial Day coverage, and the women's semifinals rounding out the network's championship weekend. At the conclusion of this agreement, NBC will have served as the broadcast home of the French Open for 42 consecutive years.
"The French Open is one of the world's most celebrated sports events," said Jon Miller, president of programming for NBC Sports and NBC Sports Network. "This ground-breaking agreement will extend our relationship with Roland Garros through 2024, and provides tennis fans with more comprehensive coverage than ever before, including live streaming of more matches."
"After 30 years of outstanding work in televising the French Open, the French Tennis Federation is thrilled to renew their American network agreement with NBC for a long term period," said Michel Grach, director of media and sponsorship, French Tennis Federation. "This new agreement will increase NBC's hours of coverage of the tournament, which will continue to build Roland Garros' American audience. NBC and FFT reinforce their partnership at a very strategic period in FFT's history with the start of the new stadium program."
The French Open will be available for tennis fans on NBCSports.com, where fans can watch live streaming of all of NBC's coverage. NBCSports.com will also provide daily video highlights and online-only analysis by NBC's tennis commentators.
In 1975, NBC became the first American television network to provide coverage of the French Open when the network signed a three-year deal with the French Tennis Federation. The tournament was covered by CBS from 1980-82 and returned to NBC in 1983, where it has remained since.
--NBC SPORTS GROUP--
About NBC Sports Group
When the Comcast-NBCUniversal transaction was completed in January 2011, the broad reach and storied history of NBC Sports united with Comcast's 24/7 ability to super-serve fans to create the NBC Sports Group. The sports media company consists of an array of broadcast television, cable television and digital sports assets, including NBC Sports & Olympics, NBC Sports Network, Golf Channel, 11 Comcast SportsNets (regional sports networks), NBC Sports Radio Network and NBCSports.com. Together, the assets of the NBC Sports Group possess an unparalleled collection of television rights agreements, partnering with some of the most prestigious sports properties in the world: the International Olympic Committee and United States Olympic Committee, the NFL, NHL, PGA TOUR, PGA of America, USGA, Churchill Downs, MLS, Tour de France, French Open, IndyCar, America's Cup and many more.
|